This record by Narthex (Marc Baron on sax and Loïc Blairon on doublebass) is fascinating, but so very demanding. This is improvisation recomposed following a specific process. The duo has performed six 30-minute improvisations recorded in six different locations, and each piece consisted of six five-minute parts. Then, they put together a 30-minute piece by putting together one section of improv 1, another from improv 2, etc. This is stark naked music, music boiled down to very short interventions interspersed with long stretches of silence (think Radu Malfatti). The interventions would feel almost aleatory if not for the strong and intentional tension they build. There is a second 30-minute piece, the fourth improvisation in the original series, where every utterance from the sax and bass has been replaced by a 1000Hz or 500Hz frequencies (respectively), producing an extremely minimal two-tone electronic piece. This is music pushed to the extreme limit of sound art and conceptual art.

After Narthex’s spartan art, Es’ trippy-drony tracks were quite welcome. I had taken a shine at Sateenkaarisuudelma, Sami Sänpäkkilä’s previous CD (he is the man behind Es and the Fonal label). This album is short and more pop, more listener-friendly. A bit of cyclical hypnotic music (“Ennen oli huonommin”), some psychedelic folk drones, and even a song reminiscent of Sigur Ros to round things up (“Haamut sun sydämestä”). Within the Finnish wave of underground psychedelic folk -- we could even label it “New Weird Finland”, following The Wire’s “New Weird America” tag -- Es stands out as a particularly enjoyable and accessible project. [Below: Excerpt from “Haamut sun sydämestä.” Will open in the audio player from Fonal’s website.]